(from
Pininfarina Press Release) The NIDO EV, the Pininfarina
electric car for the towns of the future

It is the first prototype of the “Nido Development Programme”, a
modular platform from which new types of hybrid and electric cars
will be developed

To mark the celebrations of its 80th anniversary, Pininfarina
unveils the Nido EV, the first running prototype of the “Nido
Development Programme”, the project for an electric car conceived,
designed and built entirely by the Pininfarina Style and Engineering
Centre of Cambiano (Turin). The Nido EV bears witness to the skills
and experience that Pininfarina has built up in the development of
electric vehicles, paying particular attention to the Segment A city
cars that will populate the streets of the future to make our towns
more pleasant to live in.

The Nido EV is one outcome of the pioneering, far-sighted decision
taken by Pininfarina three years ago, to focus on sustainable
mobility, approaching it from various angles: not only the adoption
of a hybrid or electric driveline, but also research focusing on
reducing consumption and “wheel to wheel” emissions, the use of
alternative materials that are lighter and recyclable, active and
passive safety, and IT, which will have to combine the sustainable
use of means of transport with intelligent traffic management.

The exterior design of the Nido EV takes up and updates the lines
and volumes that won the Nido of 2004 the award for the Most
Beautiful Car in the World in the Prototypes and concept cars
category, the Compasso d’Oro 2008 and a place in the temple of
modern art, the MoMA of New York. On the other hand, the interiors
of this first Nido EV project are still those of a technical
prototype, with no attempt at stylistic research.

The Nido EV is a veritable laboratory designed both to explore the
electrification of a small city car and to develop a modular
floorpan. The body structure of this first prototype is a tubular
steel frame, while the final version will have an aluminium space
frame. The structure was designed to adapt to four different,
completely electric or hybrid vehicles: 2-seater, 2+2, pickup and
light van.

The Nido EV, a small city car (marginally larger than a Smart), has
2 seats and a permanent magneto rear engine. The “Nido Development
Programme” also envisages the development of two more, slightly
larger versions: the first will be a hybrid with an endothermic
engine positioned at the front and an electrical engine at the rear;
the second will be electric with a front engine. In both cases, the
position of the engine makes it possible to increase roominess to
seat 4, and to improve weight distribution. The Nido EV prototype is
powered by a Zebra Z5 Ni-NaCl battery, which guarantees very high
levels of safety and reliability. When fully charged, it has a range
of 140 km and a top speed of 120 km/h (limited electronically), and
accelerates 0-60 km/h in 6.7 seconds. The environmental
compatibility of the Zebra Z5 battery is enhanced by the total
absence of harmful or polluting chemical substances and the fact
that it is 100% recyclable at the end of its life, in fact the
batteries are recycled in the foundry and used to produce stainless
steel. The prototype is also equipped with “green” tyres, developed
by Pirelli paying particular attention to safety, environmental
sustainability and saving.

Where climate control is concerned, the “Nido Development Programme”
will use an AC electrical compressor and a high voltage electric
heater making it possible to implement automatic control strategies
which will help to reduce consumption in most conditions. The
Programme will also cover research into solutions and light-weight
components with a high mechanical/electrical efficiency, and energy
saving solutions (batteries with outstanding charging performance)
and braking systems specifically for hybrid/electrical applications.

Pininfarina aims to become the benchmark in Italy, and further
afield, for sustainable mobility, just as it has been a global
benchmark for style for the last 80 years, always investing in
research and development programmes to tackle problems as they
emerge in the motor industry rapidly and methodically.

During the energy crisis of the 1970s, for example, the industry
concentrated on aerodynamics and alternative sources of energy to
reduce petrol consumption. Pininfarina replied by developing the CNR
Energetica 1 prototype, with ideal aerodynamic bodywork. Those years
also produced the Ecos, the first electric car developed by
Pininfarina, underlining that it was on the cutting edge in an area
that the motor industry had only begun to reassess recently. In the
1980s, Pininfarina research into the application of light materials
resulted in the Audi Quartz and Lancia Hit prototypes, which
explored the use of new and lighter metallic and compound materials.
The 1990s brought greater understanding of environmental problems,
more research in the field of recyclable materials and ergonomics,
and a more efficient concept of how to “package” the vehicle.
Pininfarina offered new solutions with the Ethos macro-project, a
family of 3 cars with an aluminium chassis, recyclable resin
bodywork and an innovative combustion engine with reduced emissions,
building up to the Ethos 3EV in 1995, another zero emissions car.
More recently, Pininfarina has focused its research on hybrid
vehicles, with the Eta Beta and Metrocubo projects, two small cars
with modular cabins that also tackle the problems of driving in town
and on medium hauls. Then, in 2004, Pininfarina returned to the
issue of safety, which it had touched on with the Sigma, Alfa Romeo
P33 and Sigma Grand Prix prototypes, and in 2008 it proposed the
Sintesi, a futuristic concept car powered by 4 fuel cells (one per
wheel).

Today, with the new global crisis and the need to curb emissions and
consumption, the opportunities offered by zero emissions urban
mobility have grown significantly: the world is increasingly aware
of the environment, and Pininfarina was the first industrial company
in Italy, and one of the first in Europe, to propose a project for a
100% electric car, the BlueCar, developed jointly with the Bolloré
company. Today, when all the large carmakers view the electric car
as an opportunity, Pininfarina takes another step forward, promoting
a new philosophy that incorporates the choice of individual and
collective electric transport in the context of a new lifestyle that
everyone should adopt in order to increase energy saving, and
protect the planet. This is why sustainable mobility has become one
of the pillars underpinning the Group’s activities. And it is also
why the new Nido EV project is now being launched, in parallel with
the BlueCar.